School boards in 2 W.Va. counties reject charter school bid

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — School boards in two West Virginia counties have separately denied an application for the state's first charter school.

The boards of education in Monongalia and Preston counties rejected the bid Monday by the West Virginia Academy, news outlets reported.

The Monongalia County board said the academy's application failed to meet seven of 10 benchmarks established by the state, including inadequate financial and facilities plans.

The academy would have located in Morgantown while recruiting students from across Monongalia County and portions of Preston and Marion counties.

West Virginia University accounting professor John Treu, who is the board chairman for the academy, said the deficiencies noted by Monongalia County were “vague and largely subjective.”

Republican Gov. Jim Justice signed a bill last year that allows for the creation of charter schools. The signing came after a gridlocked special legislative session on education that drew heavy protests from public school teachers.

Educators and Democrats argued that the move to install charters was driven by outside interests that will steer money away from public schools.